Sorry for your lost deer. You did all you could or all anyone could expect. I have had a fear of that same thing happing to me. I have made a gage from aluminum plate and marked it with an electric engraving pin. It has the height of the sight off the rest, the height of the rest off the bow, and the distance from the center of the rest (and sight) over to the bow frame. After I get up in stand I check the bow.

We' ve all been there and it' s a crappy feeling. Take comfort in the fact that you didn' t take a bad shot (to your knowledge at the time), or rush a shot, or shoot at a bad angle. You did everything right. You even followed up the trail very well. I feel for you but the pain will get better. Just imagine if you hadn' t seen her with the arrow in her, then you' d never know why/wher your shot was off and maybe would have wounded another deer next time. Now the next deer is better off.

Sounds like you did everything you could, but it does make you feel bad regardless. But I think it will be a helpful post for everyone, thanks for sharing.

Good luck,
Mike

It happens to every bow hunter at some point. I' ve lost several myself, some it took years to completely get over, others I forgot about by the end of the season. I learned from the mistakes and moved on. Not ALL lost deer are result of a mistake, sometimes we just make a bad shot. That' s what hunting is all about, you get up and get back after them.

Sorry about your deer. It' s a good idea to have a spare arrow in the quiver for shooting small game, or for taking a practice shot if you should fall with your bow, bump it, or as in your case, drop it. I know if you do shoot a practice shot, there is a good chance of losing an arrow, but you wouldn' t lose time coming out of the woods to find your bow is still shooting true.